Gratitude

Feeling overwhelmed with gratitude for life & for being a woman. I have so many beautiful & amazing women friends and family. On top of that, I also get to work with really amazing women too. Tonight we worked with these wives of Marines who were injured in Afghanistan. It's incredible to me what people can go through. It's amazing to me what people can endure and what the human spirit can face and how joy and love can win out in the end.
I've been thinking lately of the things I need- the things a woman needs. There's a song about Passionate Kisses & it goes a little something like that! Really though, a comfortable bed that won't hurt my back, food to fill me up, warm clothes, and all that stuff... and passionate kisses from you!!! We need sunshine and freedom, we need love and support, we need babies to hold and we need time to ourselves, we need warm bubble baths & glasses of wine, we need fresh air to breathe, we need good friends and family and I really do think we need passionate kisses as well. We should all have a hand to hold & someone to love who loves us in return.
I've been reading in Meditations from the Mat about Brahmacarya -moderation, balance... essentially! And that when we follow that voice in our heart that leads us in balance with total faith- we reach our full potential! And in a you tube video my friend sent me- Sean Corn talks about empowering ourselves and other women- we lift ourselves up so we can lift each other up. "The Universe has conspired to empower us!"
There is a woman who just started working with us- she has 2 daughters and recently broke up with her boyfriend who was cheating on her. She doesn't have a car & takes the bus- which stops running about 2 hours before she gets off work. She's so pretty and super sweet and you just know she's been through some shit. She doesn't have many friends here or much support & she's struggling financially... like we all are. But looking at her tonight- I see so many women. I see all of us who think we aren't worthy because some dude told us so. I see those of us who think we aren't capable or smart enough or pretty enough or just plain good enough... because some dude told us so. Or some jealous girl. Either way- all those not enough's come from fear. And there are 2 things- there is fear & there is love. So, can we please, for the love of love, choose love! Love for ourselves and love for each other. Women and men alike- we're all souls on a journey and we're all deserving of greatness- we all know unconditional love- on some spiritual level at least. Can we please be the love and support each other needs? The thing that will destroy us all is the distance between us! So let us reach out and help each other and hold each others hands and walk with each other in freedom and joy and love.
So back to what this woman needs- she needs love and she's got it! When we practice gratitude we are reminded of all that we have. We are such blessed people. I think everyone on this Earth can say at least one thing they are grateful (some of us are far more blessed & can think of many) and when you can start with one thing... more will come. It's often a choice & a perspective. Don't get me wrong- I know there are tough things, tough times, again... what the soul can endure amazes me. But even in the toughest of times- if we can remind ourselves of at least one thing to be grateful for, we can begin to come back to life- to grow. And that gratitude gives us confidence and that lets us better love ourselves and each other and that can heal the whole world.
So go on now, give me one thing you're grateful for...